Like the old joke “How do you get a million dollars
with a jazz club? Start with two million,” running an
independent jazz record label is not for those without
deep pockets or afraid of high risk. But Neal Weiss,
founder of Whaling City Sound, has built an impressive
roster of artists, including saxophonist Dave Liebman,
drummer Gerry Gibbs and others who have made
acclaimed CDs for the label over the past 18 years.
Like many jazz label founders, Weiss was a big fan
of the music early on. He explained, “It started back in
high school with the love of the music. My dream was
to be an A&R man and I also looked at becoming
a recording engineer. I grew up near New York City, so
I considered going to the RCA Institute. I became a big
jazz fan through my older brother and collected
records. At the end of the last century, I began a career
in the fiber optic business. There was a big boom in
1999 and I thought that I was going to be wealthy. It
frustrated me that the people I’d go to hear weren’t
available on CD in general, so I talked to some local
musicians. I started a label with some of them,
a vocalist named Marcelle Gauvin and piano player/
arranger John Harrison. We agreed that the first CD
would be Marcelle’s, produced by John. It was called
Faces of Love. It was a very good CD that stands up to
this day. I managed to continue through the ups and
downs of the fiber-optic industry; we had collapses in
2001 and 2008.”

Weiss’ goals are straight forward: “We try to be
first-class in four areas: composition, performance,
recording and packaging. We want them all to be
equally strong and I view the competition as Sony,
Blue Note and Verve.”

The traditional business model for record labels
was to find talent, sometimes help put musicians
together, choose repertoire and book the studio, though
it has changed in the digital era. Weiss does a little of
everything, though most CDs are already complete by
the time he hears from an artist. “They’re already
mastered and someone will come to me. If I want it,
we’ll try to work out a deal.” It’s not surprising that
Weiss is bombarded with CDs seeking his investment.
Most Whaling City Sound CDs are by artists he
admires, though he occasionally takes referrals from
them. “I recall getting a CD from Rale Micic called
Night Music. I never heard of him but I was absolutely
convinced that I could say no in good conscience and it
wouldn’t be a problem. I put it on as I went to sleep
and the first track killed me [laughs]!... Even in the
times when I’m prepared to walk away, sometimes
I can’t. Right now I’m overwhelmed, scheduled into
next year and figure out where the funds are coming
from. I’m trying to figure out how to make better sense
of this economic enterprise.”

When needed, Weiss doesn’t hesitate to take an
active role on a record date. “I’ve only done two or
three vanity projects, where I chose the band and music
and told people what to do. There are a few that are in
between where I’m in the studio and make suggestions
about material or an arrangement. For example, the
late Joe Beck did one called Trio 7 with [bassist] Santi
Debriano and [drummer] Thierry Arpino. He was
doing an acid-jazz version of ‘Impressions’ and I asked
him to open and close it with a solo. He liked that idea
and thanked me for it.” Other artists praise Weiss for
his rapport with them. NEA Jazz Master saxophonist
Dave Liebman, who has recorded for numerous labels,
said, “Neal Weiss is definitely one of the most generous
and enthusiastic producers out there. Everyone at
Whaling City Sound from Ginny Shea, who does PR,
and David Arruda, who is a top CD designer, is
committed to the music.” Saxophonist Greg Abate,
who has made several CDs for Weiss, shared his views:
“Neal is a consummate professional, ethical
businessman and a patron of the arts. He’s a generous,
non-biased person whose word is his bond. I am
fortunate to be on his label. Neal has nurtured a great
record label and has been so accommodating. He does
a lot of promotion and allows me the freedom to do
what I want to do. When he makes suggestions about
my music, he will say, ‘I can ask but you don’t have to
say yes.’” Guitarist John Stein, who has issued ten CDs
on the label, agrees: “The record business is not great
now. It has changed from the old days, when you had
a hit record, everybody made money. I’m just an artist
who is trying to document my art. There aren’t that
many good people. They lie to you or don’t say what
they’re going to do. If you’re naïve, you can be taken
advantage of. Neal is as honest as the day is long. He’s
sincere and doesn’t bullshit you. He is who he says he
is. That’s a pleasure in this business.”

One of the biggest successes for Whaling City
Sound has been drummer Gerry Gibbs. Weiss said,
“Gerry is unusual. He has a remarkable ability to
produce products and projects down to minute detail.
We did a two-CD set of Miles’ electric music. He went
in and did a marathon single day of recording little bits
and pieces and by the end of the night, he had it
stitched together what little interludes go between this
track and that track, over two hours of music, and he
knew exactly what the order and segues were going to
be, because he had that all figured out. He didn’t
necessarily record them in that order, but he knew just
what this thing should sound like before he walked in.
I think that’s one of the things that Kenny Barron and
Ron Carter really appreciated about him. We did three
CDs with them. There’s a generational and experience
difference, but they quickly respected him for his
ability to not waste their time.”

Gibbs doesn’t mince words when it comes to
working with Weiss: “Neal is completely old school. He
believes people want great packaging and a story
behind why someone recorded what they did. He
creates elaborate booklets with art, pictures, information
and whatever else the artist wants to put into the
packaging... Neal makes sure that there is always
something that makes it worth buying the actual CD to
keep in your collection for a lifetime just like we all do
with LPs. Neal also loves every kind of jazz, where
many labels want to only push one type. He loves
bebop, straightahead, fusion, avant garde, jazz rock, etc.
He releases music on his label of every type of jazz and
a few bands he likes that have nothing to do with jazz.”

One of Weiss’ most satisfying achievements was
convincing one of his longtime favorites, vibraphone
great Terry Gibbs (father to Gerry and who officially
retired from performing at the age of 90 in 2015), to
make a new recording. An informal jam session in
Gibbs’ living room with Gerry, pianist John Campbell
and bassist Mike Gurrola was recorded on iPhone by
Gerry’s wife and promptly shared on YouTube, where
it promptly got 46,000 hits overnight. Weiss was
fascinated with this performance: “He took about a
three-minute solo and it’s fantastic. Then he sits down
on the sofa and his dog is walking around. So we had a
discussion and Gerry also talked to him. After Terry
saw the many hits his YouTube video got, he realized
‘Maybe I got one more in me.’”

Terry Gibbs enjoyed the feedback, but was
reluctant to take on the project. “Neal’s been after me
to record for years. I told him I don’t record or play
anymore. 80 years is enough!” But Weiss persisted and
after the video hits continued to build, Gibbs relented,
but he insisted on several conditions: “I don’t want to
use a studio, I’ll record a jam session at my house. He
paid the guys for four days in case I got tired. I figured
we’d do two or three tunes in one day and get enough
in four days to make an album. We recorded 31 songs.
We never heard what we played. We went from one
tune to another. He brought one of those sophisticated
recording boards that they have in the studio. Out of 31
songs, I picked out 14 to make a 78-minute album, then
Gerry took it back to New York and mixed it. Nobody
records like this; this is how you recorded in the old
days with one microphone.”

Like many jazz label owners, turning a profit in
their business is difficult, as Weiss explained: “I haven’t
figured out how to make money, so the angle is trying
not to lose as much. I would like to get to the point
where it is almost self-sustaining. I have worked
another job my whole life and I am now half-retired
from day jobs and devoting more time to the music.
That’s number one. When I first started about 18 years
ago, people said, ‘Have fun, but don’t expect to get any
radio airplay, there’s so much stuff out there.’ Almost
from the get-go, we created a buzz among the jazz
programmers and program directors, to the point
where some of my early promoters said they were
getting upset at me because new CDs weren’t coming
fast enough. I don’t take it literally, but one programmer
said, ‘We don’t bother to preview Whaling City Sound
CDs anymore. We just open the envelope and put them
on the air.’ I don’t believe that, but I love the sentiment.
That’s what we’re after, for them to have confidence
that they should at least take a listen to us.”

There are plenty of CDs due out soon or in the
works. Weiss notes, “In New Bedford, there’s a group
of brothers known as Tavaras. I’m hoping to get
something more mainstream issued by one of them,
There’s a bassist named Dave Zinno and through
a combination of circumstances I will have four
different CDs by him out soon. The first is a band that
goes by AGNZ, that’s a bit of a fusion group with
Adam Nussbaum, Dino Govoni, Jay Azzolina and
Dave. I have a trio led by the drummer Steve Langone
with pianist Kevin Harris and Dave. I have a duet with
guitarist John Stein and Dave, a kind of quiet dialogue.
Then Leo Genovese, Rafael Barata and Boston-based
tenor Mike Tucker and Dave went into the studio.
Miles Donahue, a trumpeter, saxophonist and
composer, whom I’ve known for years, has a new one
with Mike Stern, Jerry Bergonzi and other good
players, that will be out in the summer. I put out a CD
by a young local sax player, Marcus Monteiro, about
ten years ago. His first one was MM4. It was kind of
edgy funk. Jazz guys didn’t like it because it had too
many modern elements. I wanted to record him closer
to a jazz setting, so I got Steve Langone again, John
Harrison and Fernando Huergo, a Berklee professor
and electric bassist I love. That should be out soon.”

Historical releases are also of interest. “I’m talking
to a party whom I can’t name who is digitizing tapes of
a prominent band. There’s a club owner in New York
who has a bible of everyone from when he ran a club on
the West Coast. Now that I’ve had releases by Phil Woods
and Terry Gibbs, I’ve thought about having something
like ‘Legends For the New Century’ to try to introduce
the audience to amazing people of the past.”

Ken Dryden- The New York City Jazz Record, May 2017 pg.11, 46

What Program Directors and Music Directors at National Jazz Radio are saying about Whaling City Sound:

"quality of WCS is a given and will most likely always be added to our rotation"

- Lester A. French Jr., Jazz Director / WMEB 91.9FM Orono, ME

"Whaling City Sound has always been a reliable resource for new voices in Mainstream Jazz."

- B.H. Hudson / WNCU - Raleigh, NC

"There are many record labels based in New England, but Whaling City Sound
is the cream of the crop. They're not only documenting the original jazz
emanating from New England, but delivering that music to the world in a
tight, pleasing and progressive package. There's not a week that goes by
without a Whaling City Sound disc being heard on New England's Jazz And Folk
Station. Keep wailin' Whaling City Sound!!!"

- Joe Zupan / WICN - Worcester, MA

"Consistently in recent years Whaling City Sound has provided this station
and the music rich Nashville market an impressive, expressive roster of
talent including many of whom we're presently playing (Moretti, Beck,
Leibman,Monteiro & Robitaille). It's a welcome, viable alternative to the
steady flow of music from the "3 coasts'".

- Greg Lee / WMOT- Nashville, TN

"Over the past few years we have come to truly appreciate the releases
from Whaling City Sound. Whaling City has consistenly provided us
with great releases that we have been happy to share with our listeners.
Whaling City Sound has been a constant on our playlists, and reported
on our top ten lists. Keep the music flowing!"

- Ken Irwin / WMUA - Amherst, MA

"In a world where it seems that even jazz musicians want to be "rock stars";
where the hype precedes the accomplishments or dues-paying; where the
popularity of a musician's work can be determined or even manipulated by the
most superficial means, Whaling City Sound has quietly, stubbornly, turned
out recordings of substance, artistry, and grace, that satisfy the heart and
soul of anybody with a pair of ears and a brain between them."

- Chris Sampson / WHUS - Storrs, CT

"I appreciate the high quality of Whaling City Sound recordings. They have a
rich diversity of artists, and they capture the full array of jazz
varieties. From swing, to bebop, great jazz vocalists, and instrumentalists.
Whaling City Sound leaves nothing to the jazz imagination."

- Renee Williams / WCLK - Atlanta, GA

"As Music Director for one of the few remaining full-time jazz stations in
the USA, I look forward to receiving Whaling City CDs. They are nicely
packaged with all the necessary information about the contents easily
accessed by our on-air hosts and their music covers straight-ahead, edgy,
vocals and Latin which are all part of our daily jazz programming."

- Arturo Gómez / KUVO - Denver, CO

"Whaling City Sound time and time again has sent me great product. I know
what to expect when one of their CDs comes across my desk: quality sound,
packaging and most of all - great jazz! Keep up the good work!"

- Michael A.Valentine / WDNA - Miami, FL

"I always await new releases from Whaling City Sounds with anticipation.
With his label, Neal Weiss consistently provides excellent music to the jazz
enthusiast and it's easy to love introducing listeners to his artists and
the bright moments he captures."

- Mark Rynearson / DMX - Worldwide

"Whaling City has done a tremendous job of documenting the art and genius of
the top performers in New England. Their recordings are consistently
engaging and entertaining and the packaging and promotion reflect the
excellence of the product. They are one of a handful of labels that seem
driven to make each release special and we all have benefited from their
efforts."

- Will Kinnally / Music Choice - Worldwide

"From listening to a number of their albums over the years...it is pretty
clear to me that Whaling City Sound and its impressive roster of artists
have one very important philosophy and that is to satisfy the demands of a
jazz audience hungry for quality."

- Eric Cohen / WAER - Syracuse, NY

"Whaling City is one of a handful of labels that I look forward to every
release that they put out. I appreciate their commitment to quality music
and progressive artists. It is small labels like Whaling City in which I
believe the future of recorded jazz music will be dependent upon - with
major labels cutting back their rosters in a big way. Thank goodness for
Whaling City and other independent labels that are supporting the art and
fostering deserving artists"